Office Visit: Guns and docs

While in medical school, I do not recall a course taught on the Second Amendment, the right of the people to keep and bear arms. As a student I was taught to treat gunshot wounds, but Second Amendment issues were not part of normal, medical school curriculum.

Now, 30 years later, professors may rethink their syllabus and add curriculum to address the subject. Why? Because of recent events in Aurora, Colo., and Newtown, Conn., firearms have become synonymous with public health.

In addition to the public health question, hidden deep within the Affordable Care Act is language, pushed by the National Rifle Association, to restrict the ability of physicians to gather data about their patient’s gun use.

Basically, a physician can ask if you use nicotine products or buckle small children into car seats, but cannot inquire if firearms are in the home. Denise Dowd, an ER physician in a Kansas City pediatric hospital and adviser on firearms issues to the American Academy of Pediatrics, called the provision “pretty outrageous,” saying it risked creating a sense among doctors that “this is dangerous information to collect.”

The NRA argues that the provision was introduced to several members of Congress (Majority Leader Harry Reid added it to final legislation) to address concerns regarding insurance carriers using data collected to discriminate against gun owners.

The provision states that “wellness and prevention” portions of the health care law “may not require the disclosure or collection of any information” relating to the “presence or storage of lawfully possessed firearm or ammunition in the residence or on the property.” It also outlines that the law cannot be used to “maintain records of individual ownership or possession of a firearm or ammunition.”

As we move forward and discuss this volatile subject, we must remember that government has assumed control of health care in America. Based on President Obama’s record, he is not working with physicians, but against. We must pay close attention to Vice President Joe Biden’s task force initiatives unveiled this week. Physicians want to do what is right, but do not wish to be caught in the middle or rewrite the Second Amendment.

David Holden is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and currently serves on the board of directors with McBride Orthopedic Hospital in Oklahoma City.